Springless self-closing hinge for doors



March 10, 1953 MQSKOFF 2,630,595

SPRINGLESS SELF-CLOSING HINGE FOR DOORS Filed July 21, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. MORRIS MOSKOFF March 10, 1953 M. MOSKOFF 2,530,595

SPRINGLESS SELF'CLOSING HINGE FOR DOORS Filed July 21. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR. MORRIS MOSKOFF March 10, 1953 M. MOSKOFF 2,630,595

SPRINGLESS SELF-CLOSING HINGE FOR DOORS Filed July 21. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. Moamfi MOSKOFF March 1953 M. MOSKOFF 2,630,595

SPRINGLESS SELF-CLOSING HINGE F'OR DOORS Filed July 21. 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 t\ l g 1.5; l R

JNVENTOR. MORRIS MOSKOFF March 10, 1953 M. MOSKOFF 2,630,595

SPRINGLESS SELF-CLOSING HINGE FOR DOORS Filed July 21, 1949 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 PLAN 1: or DooR FRAME INVENTOR. Monms MOSKOFF Patented Mar. 10, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENT] OFFICE SBRINGLES S. =SELF- CLOSING HINGE EOR DOORS Morris Moskofi, Bronx, N. Y.

ApplicationJuly. 21, 1949, Serial No. 106;019 1 4 Claims. 1.

This invention relates to" new and useful..im-. provements in door hanging" mechanisms; The invention particularly relates to a mechanism for hanging a swingdoor.

The fundamental principle availed ofisthat well-known principle of physics. that when a.-

somehow supported body is disposedrelative to its support in such manner that it is in unstable.

equilibrium the body will alwayshfriction'allowing, seek a condition of stable: equilibrium, and. will perform by'itself automatically a movement in. space to. assume a condition. of. stable equilibrium.

According to the presentinvention, this prin.

ciple is as above utilized,.butlsaidjprincipleis.

carried further, in that the. door; is swingably. mounted relativeto each of .Ia pair .of-vertically;

spaced points; and in .this connectiona mechanism is provided which so functionsthat, in view. of the fact. that included .in said. mechanism .is

a means movable on a dooreopening; swingtto effect a temporary horizontal;offsettingpf. said. points, the door, whenever the sameis. pushed to swing out of. the plane. of the. door. frame .and then released fromthepushing pressurethereon,

immediately responds .to its. own... inherent. urge. to. seek a position of stable equilibrium, .that.is,. to lower its center of gravity, .thereby. to'return...

the door to. its normal extensioninsaidplane.

It is therefore an object.to.provide;.a..novel. door hanging mechanism which isanew article.

of manufacture.

It is" another. object of thisl-in entiontoprovide a mechanism for" hanging; a.. swing door.

which insures positive self closing oflthe. door...

It isa further objectof the. inventiontoproevide a door hanging mechanism applicableto a.

door installed forbeingjiswung; openinonly one direction withrespect to the doorxframe.

It is'a further object to'provide. a .door. hanging,

mechanism applicable to a' door installed forbeing swung open in two. opposite-directions with.

respect to the door frame.

It is afurther' objectoffthe invention to provide a door hanging. mechanismwhicli. is. noninclusive of a spring; means for. restoring, the. door to a closed position after hasbieen man.- ually pushed open and released fromithepushing,

pressure thereon.

It is a' further object of 'the invention'to provide a springless hanging" mechanism for a" swing door.

Various other objects, features and advantages' of the invention; amongthese': a: special arrangement-for 'reducingfrictiontoa'miiiimum r in 'a' form adapted to permithanging.ofthedoor.

toallow"'the same to be opened'from.eitherside. thereof byswing of the door in the appropriate. direction relative to the door frame.

Fig. 2 is. a similarview, on an enlargedscale, for showing more'clearly. that partof the door.

hanging mechanism .seen nearthe top.of\ Fig. .1...

Fig. 3, drawn to afurther enlarged scale, side elevationally shows themechanism of Fig. 2 said.

mechanism being shown. in this view as tem-- porarily rearranged to have itspair of depending.

pins. raised, .as. preparatory to hingedly. mount.-

ing the door or to removing thedoor. from its frame; this .view also showing, in. central vertical. section, a: cooperant subdivision. of'said mechanism which; fixed on the top ofQthe. door, swings.

with the latter;

Fig, 4, drawnxto still a' further enlarged scale.

shows-the cooperant subdivision .of Fig. 31 in top perspective.

Fig: 5 is a" perspective view showing, a portion of that part-of the door hanging mechanismine terposedbetween the bottom of the door and the sill'or equivalent across thebottom of the .door frame; said portion of said mechanism partin:

. eluding: a. cup like housing fixedly set in said sill or equivalently fixedly secured.

Fig; 6 isa; perspective view showing, by itself,

a triplyn apertured washer to be added to the mechanism of .Fig. 5-to constitute the top member.of=the.incomplete assembly seen inFig; 5.

Fig. '7, drawn to an enlargedscaleisavertical section showing thearrangement of a complete.

assembly of. parts on and adjacent to the bottom of J the door. when. the. door. plane. is parallelly arranged relative to the. door-frame opening. Fig; 7 also showsinpartthe mechanismtaken on the lines 1|.of..Fig ..5.

Fig. 81s a. view. similanto Fig. 7', buttshowingg thechanged' relationship, of the parts :at the-cone clusion ofa swing of the door in either direction for then lying in a plane at a full 90 angle relative to said door-frame opening.

Fig. 9 is a perspective view of a complementary component of the part of the mechanism shown in Fig. said component, more specifically, being that portion of the last-named mechanism part which is fixedly mounted in a suitable accommodating recess in the door and extending upward from the bottom portion of the door.

Fig. 10 shows the mechanism of Fig. 9 elevationally.

Fig. 11, drawn to a scale somewhat enlarged over that of Fig. 9, is a bottom plan view of the mechanism part of Fig. 9 as assembled for hingedly mounting the bottom of the door in the door frame.

Fig. 12 fragmentarily shows a lower portion of the door, at its side opposite to its wide swinging side, showing a recess and a one-piece bracket bent to T-shape secured in said recess.

Fig. 13 is a horizontal section, as though takenon the line |3|3 of Fig. '7, for more clearly showing one of two like ball-race formations at opposite locations at the bottom of an annular groove in a cup-like housing containing a pair of steel balls (these indicated in this view in dot and dash lines).

Fig. 14 is a fragmentary sectional development taken on the line |4|4 of Fig. 13; which Fig. 14 may also be considered to represent a section taken on the line |l|4' of Fig. 13.

Fig. 15 illustrates in perspective, and on a rather enlarged scale, a shaped steel plate for facilitating ready securement in fixed location of the lower end of a central bolt associated with the cup-like housing Fig. 5, where, as in the case of a cement floor, a wooden sill for the door frame is omitted, or, if a sill be present, it is monolithic with the cement fioor.

Referring now to the drawings more in detail, and first to Fig. l, a door is illustrated as hingedly hung pursuant to the invention in a door frame 2|; one of the two jambs of said frame being indicated at 22, and the top member of said frame being indicated at 23. The door sill is shown at 24.

The part of the mechanism installed above the door and carried by the top member 23 is shown in Figs. 1-4. Each of the two depending cylindrical pins 25, has at its upper end a cylindrical enlargement 25 said pins being coupled into a single structure by a cross-rod 26. These pins, in an exact sense, are not pivot pins, but rather what may be called pivotee pins; as will be explained below. The pins 25 are raisable and lowerable relative to a saddle-bar 27 of inverted U- sliape fixed to a mounting plate 28 provided at opposite ends with a suitable plurality of countersunk apertures 29 for attaching screws 30.

The means for raising and lowering the pins 25 comprises a lever 3| which at one end carries a collar 32 for rockably embracing the crossrod 26 and at its other end is bent over on itself as indicated at 33. This lever, by virtue of a pin and slot mounting therefor as indicated at 34, and the presence of an L-bracket 35 secured to the plate 28, has a fioating fulcrum. The bent over end portion 33 of said lever is slotted as at 33 and downwardly extended through said slot 33 and the adjacent end of the first-named slot is the shank of a set-screw 31 which is threaded through an aperture in the plate 28. The rounding established by the bent over structure of said lever adjacent to the set-screw 3'1 is for coac'tion 4 with the ramped face 38 of a shaped block 39 fixed on the plate 28.

The top member 23 of the door frame has a suitable upwardly recessed cut-out 40, for having nested therein the parts just described.

When the set-screw 3! is retracted as in Fig. 2, the pins 25 are fully lowered, for engagement with the portion of this part of the door hanging mechanism carried at the top of the door 23; and when said set-screw is turned until the adjacent end of the lever 3| is stopped by the block 39, said pins are precisely raised to the intended maximum extent, as shown in Fig. 3.

Now, the door may be hung at its top relative to the door frame 2|, or removed from the latter. The rise of pins 25 as an accompaniment of a descent of the screw 31, and vice versa, is an important safety feature; since, in raisin the door in the course of its installation to its predetermined path of swing (preferably about below the bottom of the top door frame member 23), the pins 25, fully lowered, must be entered into a receptor 4| fixed in the top of the door, while the screw 31 is retracted upward. If the screw 31 is not retracted upward it will not be possible to raise the door under the to member 23 of the door frame 2|. Consequently, a careless workman cannot ever leave the installation, thinking the door is properly hung, yet with the latter inadvertently disconnected from or insecurely connected to the top member 23 of the door frame.

The receptor 4| is clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 4. Said receptor 4| comprises a main portion 42 cavitated at 43 and having at its top a pair of aligned and oppositely offset plate extensions 44 and 45 with countersunk apertures 46 for attaching screws 41 for attaching the receptor to the door top as in a recess shaped as shown in Fig. 3.

The cavitation 43 has two horn-like extensions 48 and 49 on opposite sides of a tongue 50, near the root end of which is a cylindrical lightening recess 5|.

The inner ends of the specially shaped recesses established by the horn-like extensions 48 and 49 are preferably rounded in conformity with the rotundity of the pins 25; and, with the door 20 hung by a mechanism pursuant to the invention, each of said pins while in the cavitation 43 is spaced outward from the inner ends of the lastnamed recesses when the door is closed.

Hence, assuming the door when thus hung to be suitably pivotally mounted adjacent to its bottom, and there adapted also to be minutely rockable about a point vertically below a midpoint between the axes of the two pins 25-as the door actually is thus pivotally and rockably mounted at its bottom, by means shortly to be describedon swinging the door in either direction out of the door frame the receptor 4i revolves in the same direction relative to said pins 25 and about said midpoint.

Consequently, whether the door is swung in one direction or the other, the inner end of the recess adjacent the extension 48 or 49 moves away from one of the pins 25 while the inner end of the other of said recesses moves toward the other of said pins thus throwing the center of gravity of the mass of the door to one side or the other of a vertical line including the center of rockability of the bottom pivotal mounting of the door.

When such a door swing is a full one, the innerend of. the .last-named one of the recesses adjacent: the; extensions 58:: and; 49 moves. into.-

engagement with the lastenamed one-of: saidpinss The function of the mechanismfor. the bottom of..the. doorras: shown in..Figs.. 1, 5144 -.will-. now be explained. The: door. 20,- has at its bottom and adjacent to its hingedly. mounted side a recess.- 52, said recess .in. horizontal. sectionoshaped for. snugly accommodatinga structure; 53, and said... recess shaped in vertical sectionrto receive. an

upstanding blade portion 54'-of said structure 53 and..a1so. to receive the. 1 horizontal 5 partially, twoplylimb. of a T-bent'strip bracket 55...

Thescrews for attaching said bracket -55 -are.

shown at 56.; and the structure53. is fully-am chored inthe recess-52by=means including an aperture 5'. through the upstanding blade por.--

an aperture 62 through the verticallimb of thee bracket 55 for taking the outer end of said screw.

Said structure 53' at its-top has atransverse cut-out 63, and said structureis vertically bored at 64 through said cut-out. Integral also with the structure. 53 is a circularly stepped bottom circular plate portion 65, carrying rigidly a pair of dependin cylindrical studs 66, one diametrically opposite the other relative to a rotary path traversed along by a circular line on the circular plate portion 65 when theilatter'with thetdoor.

is turned in one direction or the other about.

an up and down extending axis. Journalled in and extending through the bore 64 is the upper enlarged end of a vertical shaft or bolt 61, which enlarged bolt end also passes through a central opening in apertured plate 68 and also through a central opening in a triply-apertured washer 59.

Said upper enlarged end of the bolt 61 is also journaled in and passes through a central opening in a rocker and camming member 10, provided at its upper side with an annular groove H in which are placed a pair of steel balls 12.

The lower reduced end of the bolt 61 has fixedly connected thereto a cup-shaped housing 13; these parts 68, 69 and '10, together with the balls 12, being contained in said housing.

Housing 13, and plate 69, are desirably made, in accordance with established engineering principles aimed at diminution of frictional wear, of bronze or the like. Housing 13 integrally includes a depending sleeve portion, having a bore 15 therethrough concentric with the bore 64. The bolt 61 at its top is threaded for taking a nut T6, and a nut ll, applied to the lower threaded end of said bolt, clamps the housing 13 fast to the bolt.

As shown in Fig. 5, the housing 13 has a squared end for placement adjacent to the jamb casing is an integral plate-like portion 18 having holes it for the passage of attaching screws 8|.

In a recess 19 cut in the sill 24 the housing 13 is seated, while seated in a recess 80 cut in the floor below the sill is the sleeve portion 14 of said housing. One of the attaching screws 8| for the housing 13 is indicated at 8| in Fig. 7 and 2|, and extended from the opposite side of the;

1 of housing, 13;

these: elements. 53,.,6.8i.' andfifillt'rotate-as onesunitg: on: the. occurrence; of 1. azndoor: swing- Thetwo; largeriacentricgpockets-m in .the. plate .681serve.to;. kee theltwo: balls l2i 18.0.-apart .at all times, even. when..said: balls duringrolling. thereofitravel' around theannular: groove l incidental to. door;

opening in one direction or the other;

A; pair: of t oppositely located. screw-studs 84: (Fig. .7) connect thehousing 13 (which it will-.be; recalled is fixed at the bottom of the doorframe.

opening), land'the rocker or camming .memberylfl.

The studs :84. are-,secured'to: the-rocker member: 10-. The member :10 I is curvediat tits .lower; end; as 'shownain Fig. 7 sand-is spacedifrom' the bottom; The housing 13L: loosely engages 1'. the stu-dss 84* holes: slightly larger; than: the; The member in is; thus universally studs 84. minutely rockablegin the housing .13..

Figs. 13 'and:1.4,1. at each: of: two. properly ametrically oppositely located: pointsqin; groovell are-.shown.detent pockets '81.. Thepockets 8! receive ballsc l2:when. the door 20 is: precisely? In. this connection. note the legend.

Plane-of DoorFrame as .appliedinFigxlB, and; 1 note that the dotand dash line A represents ther closed;

limitzofa door swinggthrough30 in one direction and that the dot and dash line B represents: the-:limit of .a .door swing through. 30?" in theop posite direction. Accordinglmeach of the pockets; 8Tis, as. shown most clearly in'Figs. 13 andn14,. oppositely attended, by ramp surfaces as shown.

and respectively marked 88 and 89in: Fig; 14, withethe.risetofrthesesurfaces extended in the direction of curvilinear extension of the groove H.

Thus, referring to Fig. 13, when the door 20 is swung toward but insufficiently for arrival at the line A, the balls 72 are both forced uphill, in the direction of the arrows A; and also, when the door is swung toward but insufficiently for arrival at the line B, the balls 12 are both forced uphill, in the direction of the arrows B. Consequently, on releasing a manual swing-effecting push on the door, after the door has been swung in either direction even merely a fraction of 1, the door is returned to normal extension in the door frame. In usual operation of the mechanism as the door is swung open a few degrees or more the entire door rides upward as the balls 12 are forced out of pockets 8'! into groove H. Simultaneously the center of gravity of the mass of the door is thrown to one side of a vertical line including the center of rockability of the mass of the bottom pivotal mounting of the door as explained previously. The door is thus suspended in a state of unstable equilibrium and upon release, at once swings back. The balls ride in groove II until they descend into pockets 81 at which point the door is parallel with the door sill and in closed position.

In regard to the plate portion 54 of the structure 53, note as shown in Fig. 9 the lateral rounding of the outer side of said plate portion, to avoid any rubbing against the adjacent jamb 22.

A simplified embodiment of the invention could, of course be provided, for hanging a door to be swung open in merely one direction; although, as will be understood, the embodiment of the invention herein described and illustrated in the drawings could be used even in that case, as by attaching properly located stops on one or both jambs of the door frame.

Where a cement, a terrazzo or other like floor is encountered, affording difficulty in chipping out recesses corresponding to the recesses 19 and 80, merely a round hole need be bored down into the floor, at its monolithic sill or if no sill is present into the main body of the floor, as by use of the well-known star drill; such hole accommodating the sleeve portion 74 of the housing 13. Then, such an additional element 90, as illustrated in Fig. 15, of a leaf-spring type having a central aperture 91 for embracing the upper end portion of the sleeve portion 14 could be employed.

While I have illustrated and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that I do not limit myself to the precise construction herein disclosed and the right is reserved to all changes and modifications coming within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

1. A mechanism for hanging a swing door comprising a cup-like structure having a ball race, a pair of balls in said race, said race underlying said balls and having a pair of recesses therein 180 apart, a circular plate having apertures 180 apart in which said balls fit, said circular plate having a cam bottom plate, a flat plate above and resting on the balls, a disk-like structure resting on said flat plate and having a pair of pins projecting through apertures in said plates, and means for attaching said door to the said disklike structure.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said 8 cam bottom tapers upwardly towards the periphery of the circular plate.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said attaching means comprises a securing plate including an attaching blade portion and strip bracket for connection to a door and a vertical pin extending through said securing plate and cuplike structure to retain the device for rotational movement with a door.

4. The combination of claim 3 wherein said strip bracket includes a depending flange, said securing plate includes a swing arm, aligned apertures in said flange and swing arm, and an adjustment pin retained in said swing arm aperture and extending through the flange aperture.

MORRIS MOSKOFF.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 696,027 Foster Mar. 25, 1902 842,668 Huey Jan. 29, 1907 982,160 Regan Jan. 17, 1911 1,338,209 Bruber Apr. 27, 1920 1,479,413 I-Iedman Jan. 1, 1924 1,666,903 Hubbs et a1 Apr. 24, 1928 1,800,165 Waldron Apr. '7, 1931 1,944,386 Winslow Jan. 23, 1934 

